My $29 Retro ThinkPad T61

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  • Опубликовано: 21 авг 2024
  • The T61 (along with the X60/X61 series I reviewed previously) was the last of the great ThinkPads, with the classic design and features that Lenovo teased us with in the "Retro" 25th Anniversary ThinkPad, but failed to deliver.

Комментарии • 471

  • @fgaudreaultcomp7276
    @fgaudreaultcomp7276 6 лет назад +62

    Very good find, especially for $29. ThinkPads, even older ones are highly desirable machines imo, because of their durability, ease of repair, usability and price of used ones. I have a T420 from 2011, had it for 4 1/2 years now and I'm not getting rid of it anytime soon. It has taken me through high school and is now taking me through college. I love my ThinkPad.

    • @tomoMik_
      @tomoMik_ Год назад +1

      need an update, did you graduate college with it?

    • @nfrcomputers
      @nfrcomputers 5 месяцев назад

      my t430s got me through HS but it's finally time to upgrade. bought a untested t800 used for $60, hopefully it works

  • @matel9985
    @matel9985 6 лет назад +21

    I still have my T61. Bough it used back in high school and still works like a charm.

  • @iansimpson7966
    @iansimpson7966 6 лет назад +19

    I picked up a T61 on ebay for 30$ shipped still in original box. He took out the hard drive though.
    I threw a 240gb ssd, 6gb ddr2 ram and a T9500 with the bios update.
    It out performs my 300$ daily driver from 2017.

    • @paulgjackson
      @paulgjackson 5 лет назад +4

      Hopefully you installed the following custom BIOS to enable SATA II speeds www.thinkwiki.org/wiki/Middleton%27s_BIOS

    • @zgagacz
      @zgagacz 5 лет назад +2

      @@paulgjackson I'm waiting for battery to flash Middleton BIOS on my T61. It has T7100. Now thinking if play safe with Merom CPU T7800 CPU or take a risk of putting in Penryn T9300 CPU. I read about the analog vs digital temperature sensor. I know Middleton bios will remove the warning, but I wander how safe it is to run Penryn CPU on Merom board.

    • @gabrielgomez2483
      @gabrielgomez2483 4 года назад +1

      @@zgagacz How did the flashing go?

  • @twocvbloke
    @twocvbloke 6 лет назад +132

    Retro T61?? I'm still using my T61!!! :P

    • @SilverSpoon_
      @SilverSpoon_ 6 лет назад +6

      the T61s will be our tombstone ;- ;

    • @WantBadtime
      @WantBadtime 6 лет назад +7

      I have a T60 from 2006

    • @Cobalt985
      @Cobalt985 3 года назад +4

      Most laptops feel like a sidegrade when you can do everything on the machine you already have!

    • @robbyskyline
      @robbyskyline Год назад

      I have a TP25 from 2017

  • @zoltankiss7445
    @zoltankiss7445 6 лет назад +11

    Instead of buying a new fan I've taken apart and oiled it in my T60. Now it isn't noisy any more.

    • @damian9303
      @damian9303 4 года назад

      Which he mentions at 8:47.

  • @BFagan
    @BFagan 6 лет назад +5

    Nearly two years of having one, I love it. Still updates the drivers, still runs strong (especially with Nvidia), and plays music and edits videos really good. I could spend $500 on a newer laptop (I have it for backup incase my desktop needs work), but for what I do, it's not necessary. Ten years old, and still is great. Lenovo/IBM really put together quality products, they never really cut corners unlike a few other mfg's out there.

  • @pthomasgarcia
    @pthomasgarcia 5 лет назад +7

    I just ordered a T61. Can't wait for it to arrive!

  • @Livewire91
    @Livewire91 6 лет назад +23

    If you use the laptop a lot at home, just take off the battery and just plug in the power cord. Really great video and you got the laptop for a really good price.

    • @leisergeist
      @leisergeist 6 лет назад +8

      I got one with a battery that lasts 100 seconds on a "full" charge lol, but I just leave it to act as a crappy backup in case the cord gets bonked

    • @segoiii
      @segoiii 6 лет назад

      "just take off the battery and just plug in the power cord."
      No, this is useless. If you want to save the battery, stop charging at 90% (start recharging at 86%). Because High-Voltage charging damages LiIon cells extremely. You can do this in Lenovo Energy Manager.

    • @Livewire91
      @Livewire91 6 лет назад

      segoiii My laptop is slower with the battery, is there something to fix it? Thats why i have always unplugged rhe battery if im using it at home for a long time. Been doing it since 2010 or so.

    • @Livewire91
      @Livewire91 6 лет назад +1

      LeiserGeist Aye, the more you use the battery the more it gets worn. Basically for anything in electronics that heats.

    • @segoiii
      @segoiii 6 лет назад +2

      "My laptop is slower with the battery, is there something to fix it?"
      This shouldn´t be the case. I don´t know why. There is no special menu for the situation (running on AC with battery inside). As long as it isn´t deeply discharged, it should be okay to take it out, too. But if you just want to protect it, it isn´t necessary. As i said: LiIon extremely dislikes to be fully charged. It´s better to do 10 times 0% to 90% instead of 1 time 0% to 100%.
      Thta´s why, for example, Tesla recommends to stop at 90%. and only when doing long distances charging to 100%. LiIon is a bit like reversed PB battery. PB doesn´t like to be discharged below 30% while charging them to 100% is okay for them ...

  • @FleetCaptainTalmid
    @FleetCaptainTalmid 6 лет назад +13

    Research the Middleton's Bios for T61 if you haven't already, it'll let you use Penryn processors and unlock SATA 2 speeds in the main bay.

  • @OlaHime
    @OlaHime 6 лет назад +49

    It may be retro for you, i'm using it as my main laptop right now.

    • @damian9303
      @damian9303 4 года назад +2

      Melvin Harris They were using it while Win7 was still in support, and I assume that's what they used for the machine. Best to say they either installed BypassESU on it, or chucked it for security lmao

    • @gamingismyhobby9258
      @gamingismyhobby9258 4 года назад

      Me too

    • @gamingismyhobby9258
      @gamingismyhobby9258 4 года назад

      It's my main laptop too

    • @Cobalt985
      @Cobalt985 3 года назад

      @@damian9303 Or installed Linux? Mine would have already had it installed, and these machines are supported very well.

    • @civic2233
      @civic2233 3 года назад

      Haha, "retro" I have an ibm lenovo thinkpad T60 from 2006, thats retro lol, if you're using the one he's saying is retro, I personally think its not, its pretty modern

  • @metroboytartu
    @metroboytartu 6 лет назад +4

    Thanks to You I found my new favourite artist! ProleteR is just my thing, thank You for that!

  • @adiabriganjarutama6144
    @adiabriganjarutama6144 6 лет назад +8

    29$ for that awesome condition?? thats a rock solid thinkpad man, even in my country T61 price is still around 150$.

    • @RainDog222222
      @RainDog222222 6 лет назад

      I'll just leave this here for you then: www.ebay.com

    • @gabrielgomez2483
      @gabrielgomez2483 4 года назад

      I pulled out a slightely newer thinkpad t400 from a dumpster in mint condition, it also has the very rare and good looking 1400X900 display. I also pulled out my best deal yet, a thinkpad x230 in near mint condition, still awaiting more... (typing this on my thinkpad t400

  • @plaidzior
    @plaidzior 6 лет назад +4

    After seeing your ThinkPad X60 video (christmas 2017), I started searching for one, because I need a small, light, portable and powerful machine for the kind of work that I do on a laptop. So, after a week of searching for a perfect ThinkPad, I've settled on a X61. It has a T7100 Core 2 Duo, 3 GB of RAM and a 320 GB 5400 rpm HDD. It's my first ThinkPad and out of all the laptops that I own, it's the best. If you hadn't posted that video, I wouldn't have bought it

  • @DJTydalOfficial
    @DJTydalOfficial 3 года назад +7

    I recommend that you flash the Middleton BIOS onto the Lenovo T61. With that you'd get the ability to put in a Core 2 Extreme, 8GB of RAM, and an SSD with fast speeds.

  • @Clell65619
    @Clell65619 6 лет назад +3

    As usual, love your videos, and welcome to the ranks of T-61 fans. When my company forced me to upgrade to a new laptop a few years back, I went looking for one of these beasts, found A 15 inch version on ebay for $35 sans HDD, battery and memory.
    For another $20 on Ebay I upgraded the processor to a T7600, maxed out the memory to 8 gig from my big box o memory sticks and stuck in a 1 t drive. I highly recommend a SSD on this beast. Boot time is now 20 seconds from cold iron to desktop... And for when I need additional storage I've got the terabyte drive in an ultrabay.

  • @ChrisLenderman
    @ChrisLenderman 6 лет назад +12

    That's an amazing find! Super jealous!!

    • @RainDog222222
      @RainDog222222 6 лет назад

      it's not really. it had no hard drive, no battery, no charger...a functioning t60 can be had for $100 (max), and the only way he stayed below that is by already having a charger and HDD laying around (the latter of which he caddied with cardboard?!?), and buying a shitty battery, which is a mistake -- I would take a fully functioning one, in good condition, for $100 every time over this frankenstein.

  • @matt4193
    @matt4193 6 лет назад +59

    "Furniture"

  • @DaniRadioCat
    @DaniRadioCat 6 лет назад +27

    I have a few of those 4:3 14" T61s myself... one running Windows 10, one running Windows 7 (Japanese language), and one running Windows 2000... all with 8GB of RAM (in the case of Win2K, I put Advanced Server to get 8GB recognized and surprisingly all drivers work even with PAE enabled)

    • @thomase13
      @thomase13 6 лет назад +1

      Whoa that's amazing!!
      Never heard of PAE on Windows 2000 Server!!

    • @rkan2
      @rkan2 6 лет назад +1

      Who said server??

    • @thomase13
      @thomase13 6 лет назад +1

      The commenter I replied to did! (Danika Sidoti)

  • @tostoday
    @tostoday 6 лет назад +101

    Thinkpads rock :)

  • @MordecaiTheAwesomeBluejay
    @MordecaiTheAwesomeBluejay 6 лет назад +2

    Back in November of last year I wanted a laptop for my personal needs for Christmas. I was thinking about buying a brand new Chromebook. Because they ain't that expensive and some were brand new at the time. But I did some research, and saw that some old (not really old) ThinkPads like the T410 and the T420 are still good machines today. So I instead bought a used ThinkPad T420 and it was my best decision ever. The keyboard is nice, and I instantly fell in love with the trackpoint. So much better than the trackpad

  • @FSM_Reviews
    @FSM_Reviews 5 лет назад +3

    2:37. The Centrino isn't actually a processor series; in order for a laptop to qualify for the Centrino badge, there has to be an Intel Core processor of some type, no dedicated graphics (only Intel integrated graphics), Intel branded wireless cards, and/or Intel-provided Bluetooth cards.

    • @vwestlife
      @vwestlife  5 лет назад

      I know that.

    • @nitrax8629
      @nitrax8629 4 года назад

      Lucky that this is an integrated graphics T61 - the ones with dedicated nVidia GPUs failed often.

  • @bsgtrekfan88
    @bsgtrekfan88 6 лет назад +1

    As an owner (also a thrift store find) of a T520 I LOVE the older generations of ThinkPads! Purpose built and beautifully designed to be a WORKHORSE..not something that is built for style. That being said seeing an earlier generation than what I own, the T61 looks interesting. Great find sir!

  • @GothPanda
    @GothPanda 6 лет назад +2

    Haven't seen anyone else make a comment about this, but seeing as I've got a couple of R61's, I thought I'd pitch this in there.
    The holes on the bottom with the icon of the keyboard and the droplet are drains for spills. There shouldn't be any screws in those ones. That caught me a few times taking them apart and putting them back together again.

  • @IsmaelWensder
    @IsmaelWensder 6 лет назад +2

    VWestlife . I like that way you review old things like this

  • @dobbins1490
    @dobbins1490 2 года назад

    8:40 "It's like Eurotruck Simulator except on real life".
    Killed me.

  • @snsm6730
    @snsm6730 3 года назад

    The R61 is similar...I rescued a gently used one from a Goodwill in may area this week for only $20. Had
    a bad ram stick under the palmrest so it was in the "scrap laptop" bin. These and the T61 are both rugged
    and compact. The classic black design is indeed...timeless !

  • @EdgarGrefve
    @EdgarGrefve 22 часа назад

    remember i was taking a computer course just around the time Windows Vista was released and the teatcher was all excited about Vista and talking about it all the time 😄

  • @Vladimir-hq1ne
    @Vladimir-hq1ne 6 лет назад

    I'm jealous.
    T61 was my favourite workhorse that time... Thank you for another nice video, sir!

  • @toxictechtat9511
    @toxictechtat9511 6 лет назад +4

    VWestlife, I actually took a hard drive from a bios based Windows 10 laptop and put it in a 2009 EFI MacBook. Defying all odds, it booted into Windows 10! So yes, hard drive swapping usually works. In this case, I'm not sure how it pulled that off, but still amazing!

    • @SoulcatcherLucario
      @SoulcatcherLucario 6 лет назад

      Windows 10 uses an image of the OS rather than just files. This makes it easier to upgrade hardware/change computers.

    • @nikhildabas
      @nikhildabas 6 лет назад +1

      Windows has been doing the image-based install since Vista.

  • @andljoy
    @andljoy 6 лет назад +12

    The loss of 16:10 displays in everything is just horrible.

  • @vxxvxxvxx
    @vxxvxxvxx 6 лет назад +6

    I wish Lenovo would make their new 14" models with upwards firing speakers.

  • @zolliesautoclinic01
    @zolliesautoclinic01 6 лет назад +52

    still dont understand why people hated vista and still do... after service pack 2 it was really good

    • @DavidScheiber
      @DavidScheiber 6 лет назад +14

      cuz it was the os that bluescreened if you launched solitaire

    • @jdebultra
      @jdebultra 6 лет назад +21

      People typically didn't give Vista enough ram. There were also a lot of default services that were running that could be turned off to increase performance. It wasn't great but if setup correctly, was perfectly fine.

    • @steaker-gi9uw
      @steaker-gi9uw 6 лет назад +8

      It was pretty rough at first, but most of that was from manufacturers not updating their drivers to support it properly.
      Then by the time Vista got pretty much fully sorted out MS released 7 so nobody really ever tried it.

    • @kimmykun
      @kimmykun 6 лет назад +1

      Agreed. I never had any issues with it.

    • @jordan177606
      @jordan177606 6 лет назад +4

      because most peoples first experience with it was on a store bought PC with 512mb ram, 2ghz core 2 duo, and intel gma graphics. And also the UAC came up for literally doing anything.

  • @KingASE88
    @KingASE88 6 лет назад +5

    Love your videos! I recently got an IBM X60 for $40, love it! My main laptop is a ThinkPad x240, the TrackPoint sucks but I’m going to upgrade it to the normal track point on the x250. The x240 is speedy with the 500gb ssd I threw in it

  • @Minecraftminer3000
    @Minecraftminer3000 6 лет назад +1

    I personally have a T41 Thinkpad over here! I believe that was one of the last really great ThinkPad models.

  • @KRAFTWERK2K6
    @KRAFTWERK2K6 6 лет назад +8

    My T61 originally came with Vista too but after a few hours or sheer horror and realizing that nothing i wanted to run on it would run under vista i completely nuked it and installed my trusty Windows XP on it and you can tell that this machine is totally made to run perfect with that OS.

  • @aspectcarl
    @aspectcarl 6 лет назад

    I am a thinkpad enthusiast! I run an x220 with Linux, it’s a brilliant combination, we bought another one to run windows 7 for my daughter, good for homework and runs SIMS 4 very well. I think your channel was the incentive to get a thinkpad!

  • @SKYELOVER
    @SKYELOVER 5 лет назад +1

    I love retro thinkpads love the lights Under the screen and on the lid on the retro thinkpads

  • @DJTydalOfficial
    @DJTydalOfficial 2 года назад

    Even if people were disappointed with the screen of the T25, I still want a ThinkPad 25th Anniversary Edition so badly.

  • @call_me_stan5887
    @call_me_stan5887 6 лет назад +6

    Retro thinkpads are awesome! Period. If one considers C2D based laptops "retro" ;) They are still alive and kicking.

    • @archygrey9093
      @archygrey9093 2 года назад +1

      Personally I consider core 2 duo more classic than retro.

    • @call_me_stan5887
      @call_me_stan5887 2 года назад +1

      @@archygrey9093 fair enough :)

  • @KRAFTWERK2K6
    @KRAFTWERK2K6 6 лет назад +24

    Something i always loved about the T61 and T60 were the small touchpads. I have no idea why Lenovo felt it was necessary to size them up to dimensions where your wrist constantly touches the damn thing? >_< Also… you know you're living in the USA when things like ThinkPads are literally thrown after you in thriftstores for just a few pennies. :o Over here in Europe you would NEVER find such laptops that cheap anywhere. Unless with several components missing or sold as dead unit.

    • @IvanBoskovic808
      @IvanBoskovic808 6 лет назад +8

      Apple popularized large touchpads and greedy Lenovo wanted piece of that market so they redesigned ThinkPads with MacBook in mind ( my theory ). What they don't understand is why we loved old "retro" design in the first place. Also anyone that i know and is a serious TP user is just using trackpoint no one uses that oversized piece of crap ( although poor trackpad performance is probably because of bad drivers or Windows ).

    • @KRAFTWERK2K6
      @KRAFTWERK2K6 6 лет назад +3

      Yeah, that's why i even got a thinkpad ever since i could use one of a friend who had one and let me organize a few photos for him and burn a picture CD (i think it was on a T40 or R40). When i used it's trackpoint i was instantly convinced and just kept using that instead of the touchpad. On a Laptop without trackpoint i can see why people want a bigger touchpad but on a laptop WITH trackpoint having a oversized touchpad is the most ridiculous design flaw ever.

    • @leisergeist
      @leisergeist 6 лет назад +2

      Ivan Boskovic Yeah, and they tried copying Apple's integrated buttons too and got tons of flak

    • @TheRailroad99
      @TheRailroad99 6 лет назад

      Well, i found a T60 for 30€ here in germany a few years ago (the top model with the Flexview screen

    • @gamingSlasher
      @gamingSlasher 6 лет назад +1

      Yes, I am quite jealous when I read about $5 thinkpads. Insane.

  • @NFreund
    @NFreund 6 лет назад +1

    Regarding "Impossible to install a already installed HDD/SSD in to a different PC": I do that all the time (for testing). Since Windows Vista that works absolutely flawless, as long as you watch out for AHCI/IDE and GPU drivers, because switching from AMD/Intel/NV to something the likes can cause problems.
    And i like that Lenovo is thinking about bringing back the old style keyboard as an option on new ones. I'd love a Ryzen Mobile Thinkpad with the old style keyboard...

  • @infinitecanadian
    @infinitecanadian 6 лет назад +2

    I once bought a ThinkPad for upwards of 200$ second hand. I tried to play games on it, but was annoyed that it only had certain sounds. I did not know at the time that it did not support OPL2 sound, although digital audio worked fine. I don't know where it is, but I might get it working again. Emulators worked great on it.

    • @KRAFTWERK2K6
      @KRAFTWERK2K6 6 лет назад +1

      Some Thinkpad models have soundchips that have soundblaster compatibility. They need to have this chip built in: www.thinkwiki.org/wiki/CS4297

  • @verynoiceroxx542
    @verynoiceroxx542 4 года назад

    One of the de-facto late 2000s Thinkpads. Fantastic little machines.

  • @budude2
    @budude2 6 лет назад +5

    I had a T61 for a couple years at work - - great machine - had a T20 before that which I still have along with some R40's - all good... I still prefer the the trackpoint over a trackpad (assuming you don't have a separate mouse).

  • @jpreza
    @jpreza 5 лет назад +3

    One of my all-time favorite ThinkPads! Mine was the 15.4" version with nVidia card. It just kicked the bucket since the video card went out :-(

    • @FSM_Reviews
      @FSM_Reviews 4 года назад

      I'm sure you can remove the video card and swap it for an Intel card. Unless it's soldered to the motherboard. This is coming from a mainly Dell enthusiast though. I'm pretty familiar with the Inspiron E-series and Latitude D-series. I know in the Inspiron 6400 that the dedicated GPU is connected via daughter card. I haven't actually seen a T61 with dedicated graphics.

    • @FSM_Reviews
      @FSM_Reviews 4 года назад

      I do have a 15.4" T61 with the 1650x1050 display. Currently typing this comment from that very laptop.

    • @nitrax8629
      @nitrax8629 4 года назад

      @@FSM_Reviews Sadly it's soldered to the board on the T61. The nVidia versions were notorious for GPU failures, the integrated graphics and earlier T60(p) with ATi graphics didn't have the issue.

  • @stonebarnard5034
    @stonebarnard5034 6 лет назад +2

    I love these things, a total addiction. Need to produce upgraded boards for these and conversion kits.

    • @vwestlife
      @vwestlife  6 лет назад

      There are people upgrading the ThinkPad X61 into the unofficial "X62": geoff.greer.fm/2017/07/16/thinkpad-x62/

  • @youtubasoarus
    @youtubasoarus 6 лет назад

    I found one of those about 4 years ago at a thrift store ($25!) and it was in rough shape (missing keys, busted hinges). Ended up losing the graphics due to a heat issue (BGA desolder) -- somehow it had become hot enough to warp the chassis by the previous owner. Watched a video that LGR released and reflowed the main board and it came back to life. Ended up getting it back to working order. It's a very capable machine for its time. Loved it. Miss it too. I've had 3 T series IBM laptops and they're all great. T20, T30 and T61. Highly recommended if you can find them for a decent price.

  • @EgoShredder
    @EgoShredder 6 лет назад +1

    $29 + battery is an amazing bargain! The general opinion is that the T500 or W500 is identical but easier to upgrade. These tend to cost more though on Ebay, especially in the UK where prices are often stupidly high.

  • @josys363
    @josys363 2 года назад +1

    I sure love my T60. Still run Win XP for a few apps I use from time to time.

  • @eliaschnl
    @eliaschnl 6 лет назад +33

    0:27 AA Computers and Technology :D

    • @16bitgaming34
      @16bitgaming34 6 лет назад

      SuperDoomz ya

    • @akshaysalve
      @akshaysalve 6 лет назад +2

      Lol spot on never knew so many people where watching his videos kudos

    • @smorrow
      @smorrow 6 лет назад +1

      Finkpad.

  • @zosxavius
    @zosxavius 6 лет назад

    alcohol will take the sticker residue off btw. no damage to the rubber coating. just be gentle because heavy scrubbing would likely wear away the rubber coating since its just applied to plastic.

  • @FSM_Reviews
    @FSM_Reviews 5 лет назад +2

    Currently, I'm using this old ThinkPad T61 that I recently put back together. Not such a bad experience with Windows XP so far. I'd say the speed of this machine can compete with my newer Dell Inspiron 3252. Fan is kinda noisy though. Sounds like it has bad bearings, but it runs smoothly. Came with Vista Home Basic.

  • @TommyFenstermacher5150
    @TommyFenstermacher5150 6 лет назад

    I miss my dad's old T60. I wish he didn't have to get rid of it, but it was issued to him by IBM, so he had to turn it in after they issued him a W510, which gave him nothing but problems.

  • @user-os2tq2xf1v
    @user-os2tq2xf1v 6 лет назад

    Another ThinkPad video. Nice!
    Now it's getting tough to find the last IBM brand models, but still could find one of those easily at my place.

  • @JessicaFEREM
    @JessicaFEREM 6 месяцев назад +1

    I hear a magic eraser works wonders on the rubberized coating of the thinkpads.

  • @greygoose3936
    @greygoose3936 5 лет назад +2

    Watching this on my T400 :) and I have a T42 arriving in the mail in a few days

  • @8bit_coder
    @8bit_coder 5 лет назад +1

    I'm watching on a Thinkpad T450! Even though I don't have that model, I still always use thinkpad since they're built like a tank!

  • @culturelab9679
    @culturelab9679 6 лет назад

    This was really entertaining, you deserve more subscribers.

  • @SilverSpoon_
    @SilverSpoon_ 6 лет назад +1

    it is precious!
    i still use a T61p. ...1920x1200, 4 gigs, 750 gigs WD black.... but no Bluetooth.

  • @christopherwilliams9418
    @christopherwilliams9418 5 лет назад +2

    Judging from the thumbnail I was hoping you had either found some Thinkpad "Retro" logos or had found a way to replicate the look and done it on your T61, lol. I'd love to have the multicolor Thinkpad logo on my X220t.

  • @janneboman8573
    @janneboman8573 4 года назад

    Ah, wonder if my old T61 still works.... first I gave it to my mother for basic web browsing, then it went to my brother as a spare until he got a new one. This made me feel that I want it back and see how it's doing. Probably no issues. I remember that my kids walked over it when they we're toddlers, didn't do anything to the beast. Indestructible.

  • @martinhollyer7110
    @martinhollyer7110 4 года назад +1

    I got a free T61, last year at this time. It works well.

  • @ScottieNiven
    @ScottieNiven 6 лет назад +1

    I have 5 T60's, 3 T61's and a T500 in my collection, all in relatively good condition which I got for free. Nicely built machines, but I wouldn't use them as a daily driver, they are just not fast enough. A few of mine have the same rattly fan issue too, so it may be a common problem.

  • @zosxavius
    @zosxavius 6 лет назад

    I have the W530 with 32gb of RAM and absolutely love it. It is a total beast of a laptop. I love the chiclet keyboard. I know people love to hate on the newer thinkpads but compared to other laptops they are pretty awesome.

    • @smorrow
      @smorrow 6 лет назад

      There are quite a lot of 'unseen' features to the new type of Thinkpad: www.pcworld.co.nz/article/print/525149/research_development_behind_lenovo_t440s_ultrabook/; it would be nice to have a "best of both worlds"-type model...

    • @zosxavius
      @zosxavius 6 лет назад

      I won't disagree they kind of lost their way with time. The W530 was possibly the last truly great thinkpad with downgrades in several ways after that, but even their newer P series is pretty darned nice and I'm likely going to eventually replace the 530 with one. Even though I have a backlit keyboard, I kind of love the overhead keyboard light built into the monitor bezel.

  • @tofuyam7361
    @tofuyam7361 5 лет назад +1

    Just ressurected mine with a new ebay battery and Lubuntu. Runs very well for most daily task like coding, youtubing, etc and kinda fun in a retro minimalist sense.

  • @lilith5865
    @lilith5865 5 лет назад +1

    Omfg THAT WAS MY FIRST LAPTOP 😭😭 I still have it stowed away in my closet. Great laptop. I ran the hell out of that thing back in the day haha !!
    Edit: I am talking about the 1st thinkpad you showed, not the t61

  • @devdeckardCain
    @devdeckardCain 6 лет назад

    Retro!? I still rock one every day!

  • @tammysilverwolf1085
    @tammysilverwolf1085 6 лет назад

    I had one of these until very recently. Mine had the quadro graphics and c2d, great machine that served me really really well. I run linux primarily, so it sang on this hardware. Great find!

  • @TheComputerGuy96
    @TheComputerGuy96 6 лет назад +2

    To be honest, I can't stand how the display bezel is not symmetrical in the T61 (even the 4/3 display version is like that). You forget about it when you use it, but then you remember it again. But other than that, it's a great computer.
    My T60 also had a rattling fan. I lubricated it with a drop of motor oil. About 3 weeks later the noise started coming back, but it wasn't as bad as before. A few months later I lubricated it again, and it's still quiet enough for now.

    • @KRAFTWERK2K6
      @KRAFTWERK2K6 6 лет назад

      Well it could be worse. The Display of the Thinkpad Edge 535 is too low and it feels like it's completely off. Makes you feel like you constantly have to look over the edge of the keyboard. Somehow Lenovo experimented with weird display bezels a lot.

    • @smorrow
      @smorrow 6 лет назад

      Would you prefer it to be equally thick on both sides in the name of symmetry?

    • @TheComputerGuy96
      @TheComputerGuy96 6 лет назад

      A display with thick borders on both sides is ugly, but I'd prefer it to something asymmetrical. Of course I wouldn't complain in a situation like this one where the computer was a great deal and works fine, but it's definitely not the best design.
      I know ThinkPads aren't designed to be pretty, but very few models have this cosmetic flaw.

  • @imeakdo7
    @imeakdo7 6 лет назад +1

    i think lenovo chose a 16:9 display over a 19:10 or 4:3 display because they didn't expect to sell a lot of them so it would be unpractical and very expensive to make a relatively large 4:3 or 19:10 display when most 4:3 and 19:10 displays are smaller and used for smartphones, phones, feature phones and smart watches.

  • @AwlrightProductions
    @AwlrightProductions 6 лет назад

    What a find! Love this channel.

  • @GarageMaxedOut
    @GarageMaxedOut 4 года назад

    Definitely standing the test of time, I'd browse the web on one. Upgrade to 4GB if its not already there, put a SSD in there, and it will do very well. I've got a bunch of videos on my channel for upgrading these and doing maintenance. Keep the Thinkpad videos alive!

  • @tweakpc
    @tweakpc 6 лет назад +1

    Good condition, especially the Brezel and keyboard, but the fins of the radiator look slightly bent, could explain the noise of the fan. You can buy cheaply on ebay faster CPU, there is even a Quad COre modding how too.
    The LCD display can also be easily replaced or alternatively, if a good LCD is installed, it is possible to convert the old CCFL lighting to a LED Backlight.
    P.S. it's not the slowest CPU built in,was also sold with T5250, Pentium Dual Core T23x0 or Celeron M
    it is possible to install X9000 CPUs which are very cheap on eBay

  • @IntellitechStudios
    @IntellitechStudios 6 лет назад

    that T61 heavily reminds me of my old T500. the old T500 I used until last December when someone hit it with a basketball and cracked the display.

  • @andisadler2897
    @andisadler2897 4 года назад

    Just bought 2 of these with T7100 CPU. UP graded the cpus to T9500 and the ram from 2gb to 4gb and the speed difference is outstanding.

  • @SudosFTW
    @SudosFTW 6 лет назад

    grandma has one similarly-specced. upgraded her to a T7700 and 4GB a while back. haven't heard any complaints for her very small workload.
    the 15.4" T61 was a different chassis. the widescreen T61 and T500 shared quite a number of similarities in parts. the T400 and T500 were technically the last of the great thinkpads, but you still have to replace some parts to get them to snuff-- the keyboard on the much later-branded models are flimsier underneath the newer into the 2010s they go, and thankfully uses the same connector and layout for both on the T400 and T500 for the T61. they were also the last 16:10 (or 8:5 if you really want to piss someone off) thinkpads that made sense. the improvements over the T61 including the ability to shove T9000/P9000 CPUs with 6MB of cache that have a faster FSB than the T61 make them much more desirable from a performance standpoint, and the W500 has a lot of interchangeable parts with the T500 as well, making parts-a-plenty on hand. some T500s also included switching Mobitlity HD3650 graphics, whereas it was an always enabled HD3450 with no way to turn it off on the T400. these models are getting extensively rare and I'm glad to say my T500 has one. it rarely gets turned on ever, but it does exist. some pressure modification is required to keep the GPU part of the heatsink properly clamped to the die so it doesn't fail, but it does the job. (if you ever get one of these and need to install the drivers, you need to install the Lenovo-supplied ATI/Intel switching graphics driver first, then update the Intel side of things afterwards with one of those drivers. from there, switching graphics is still selectable from the power manager battery tray icon context menu. )

  • @N2RI1
    @N2RI1 5 лет назад +1

    besides the normal laptop issue with old well used machines after 10 years i.e. failing batteries & display screens, heat paste on processors drying up loosing cooling capacity so keep vents clean as W500 has screens that restrict cooling. the T61 has a couple others 1 the CPU likes to let go of solder pins even if not running as hot as the newer W500 units which also do it. then hardware limits are barely able to keep up with todays sound, video and processing needs maybe lagging of freezing a bit on some games etc. but with practice you can learn to fix/replace bad parts be careful with them even though they are true Road warriors with cages and drop protection. as parts are beginning to dry up. for sound/graphics use the W500 is twice as good. the 65watt PSU is gonna get warm so use the 90watt PSU for both TPs. the W520 uses a 175watt PSU so...

  • @mrskizzot
    @mrskizzot 6 лет назад

    I use a T61 daily. Someone was throwing it out and I completely rebuilt it. Great laptop.

  • @dogbreath203
    @dogbreath203 Год назад

    I have one and the one complaint I have is that the DDR2 memory is now pretty expensive to upgrade it from 4GB to 8GB. Because of this, I haven't verified it can run 8GB. I've heard contradictory comments.

  • @KRAFTWERK2K6
    @KRAFTWERK2K6 6 лет назад

    the CPU fans in the ThinkPads often need replacement after a few years because they just die off and wear out. Had to do this with my T410 once because it was totally dead and didn't really cool anymore. It was quite a hassle because it required some Laptop surgery because i had to take out the copper cooling vent and pipe as well but it was worth it. Afterwards the thing worked fine again and it sounded a lot healthier than before. So if you don't mind some hardware puzzling it's something you might wanna consider doing. Replacement parts are thankfully not that expensive.

  • @BlueLightyGaming123
    @BlueLightyGaming123 5 лет назад +1

    ''your windows vista product key which your free to copy cause who cares about windows vista these days'' best thing said by a human

  • @GarretClaridgeMeerkat
    @GarretClaridgeMeerkat 6 лет назад

    Looks kinda like the T410 someone gave me, Pretty nice with an SSD for running light show software

  • @NervousNick
    @NervousNick 5 лет назад +1

    "Classic Laptop"....Nice Score!

  • @SATALIT3
    @SATALIT3 6 лет назад +1

    After watching this video I was inspired to fix my IBM T42 laptop. Right now I'm in the process of restoring it I would love to throw windows 7 on it but it can only support 2 gigs of really old ram and it has one of those older style hard drives with those needle like connectors on it . so I cant really do much as for upgrades, but I will be able to get a copy of windows xp running on it soon.

  • @fightforfreedom5292
    @fightforfreedom5292 2 года назад

    Very nice laptop I just bought the 4 x 3 aspect ratio version of this off eBay for £105. It has a 14 inch screen, 1024x768 resolution, a core 2 Duo T 7400 processor with 2 GB of RAM and dedicated Nvidia graphics. I'm really looking forward to using it.

  • @therealbluedragon
    @therealbluedragon 6 лет назад

    Wow, what a great find. So lucky!

  • @povilasstaniulis9484
    @povilasstaniulis9484 6 лет назад

    Serviced one of these a while ago. Old beast but quite well built.
    With an SSD, I bet it would still be decent enough for basic browsing and media playback.

  • @joempoem478
    @joempoem478 3 года назад +1

    I love how the t61 is labeled under "furniture".

  • @fisqual
    @fisqual 6 лет назад

    I was a little late to the thinkpad game, so I prefer a touchpad to the eraser. Consequently, my biggest gripe about the modern thinkpads is that they removed the physical mouse buttons at the base of the touchpad! If they brought them back I'd definitely replace my 2 aging T530s, but they will do for now.

  • @williamdlc3
    @williamdlc3 4 года назад

    We have exactly both the X60 and the T61 at home, sadly not working :(. My T61 was my laptop in sophomore year of high school and loved the keyboard. Ran XP and Windows 7's betas on this thing, and loved it!

  • @danielponder690
    @danielponder690 6 лет назад

    I had one of these in undergrad, best windows product computer I've had

  • @Gmoney6422
    @Gmoney6422 5 лет назад +1

    I wish they would have brought out a 4:3 screen on a thinkpad. No one has made ANY laptop with that for some time now.

  • @unknownrecords176
    @unknownrecords176 6 лет назад

    Nice find,for the stickers on the battery use a heatgun and go back and fourth trying not to stay in one area for to long and then peel a corner of the sticker up and peel it off. I use this method all the time when removing windows os stickers from computer cases.Also for the sticker residue on the top of the laptop use some lighter fluid and it will come right off, stay away from rubbing alcohol as it will remove the matte finish.

  • @reymerc2045
    @reymerc2045 6 лет назад

    Congrats on your find, it appears to be a great laptop.

  • @kisielthe1st
    @kisielthe1st 6 лет назад

    I've used a laptop with pretty much exact the same specs (1280x800 screen, intel t7100 cpu and 4G of memory) for the last decade. Only recently I switched to a refurbished dell desktop machine because the laptop developed a bad case of "falling apart due to age and not so pleasant use". It served me well, just slow. I have to be honest, a CPU made after 2012 is a blessing.

  • @chrism869
    @chrism869 Год назад +1

    best retro laptop you can get

  • @Lurker1979
    @Lurker1979 6 лет назад

    I worked at a thrift store and that was a major issue with computers we sold. We would have theft of the memory.

  • @FdPros
    @FdPros 6 лет назад

    i just found this channel and it's like druaga1 + ashens mix
    perfect

  • @luizamoczydlowski2522
    @luizamoczydlowski2522 Год назад

    the second youtube video you played is the language i speak at my house!!!

  • @Pyridox
    @Pyridox 6 лет назад

    I have a ThinkPad T61p that I got a couple of years ago. It's a very rugged laptop, with metal hinges and supports. You probably can fix the noisy fan issue easily.